Mona doesn't like to ask people for help. But it is hard for her to perform daily activities on her own. She is almost 13, yet she is no larger than a 5-year-old. Mona has trouble keeping her balance and can't walk very far. When she uses a wheelchair, she can't push it herself.

    Fortunately, Mona has a wonderful service dog named Sam. A service dog is a dog that has been trained to assist someone who has a physical problem. Sam lets Mona lean on him when she walks. He also pulls her wheelchair and turns lights on and off. When Mona drops something, Sam picks it up. He even pulls her socks off at night.

    Sam also helps Mona with everyday tasks at school. He carries her books from class to class in a special backpack. He puts Mona's completed assignments in her teachers' homework trays. In the lunchroom he throws away her trash.

    Besides making Mona less dependent on other people, Sam helps her lead a fuller life. Mona's classmates flock around Sam like geese. This has helped her make friends. Sam also helps Mona be more active. With his aid, she raised over $500 in walk-a-thon for her local humane society.

    Because of Sam, Mona doesn't have to ask people for help. Sam brings her closer to other kids. And he even helps her contribute to her community.

    Angelo Casimiro made something new at the age of fifteen.

    Casimiro made a device(装置）. It can charge（给……充电）your cellphone as you walk! When you run, jump or walk, a pair of discs(唱片）inside the shoes can produce electricity. It can be used to charge your phone or any other devices with a USB port!

    People have to move a lot if they use the device to charge. Those who like travelling in the wild will love it. It takes about eight hours' jogging to charge a lithium-ion（锂离子）battery and two hours' playing basketball will only give the cellphone about 10 minutes' charge.

    A device called SolePower is a kind of insole（鞋垫）that can produce electricity. SolePower is like Casimiro's device, but it can fully charge a cellphone after over a four-kilometre walk. So there's a lot for Casimiro to do to make his invention（发明）better.

    Anyway, Casimiro's device is quite good. After all, his invention started something new, right?

    In Los Angeles, a waiter served a group of teens. The waiter remembered his experience as a young high school student. So he made sure the teens had a pleasant experience at the restaurant. The waiter made sure of it.

    After serving all the teens doing a great job, he was left a tip, only $3.28. That was hardly enough to buy a drink at Starbucks.

    The waiter went home. And he felt hatred for the students who did not know the value of hard work. They looked down on people like him. Or so he thought.

    After several days, the waiter forgot about it. His life went on as usual. But ten days later, he received a letter from the teens.

    "About a week and a half ago, on October 7, my three friends and I came to eat at this restaurant as our own homecoming celebration. It was an exciting experience for us to be here alone, and it was all new to us. And you were the best waiter we could ask for. You were kind, helpful, and didn't treat us like babies! So I want to say thank you for making our 'grown-up' experience so amazing and fun.

    "I would also like to say sorry on behalf of my group. Since we were new to all of this, our 13-year-old minds didn't exactly know how to deal with the bill. The bill was reasonable, but we had completely forgotten (and didn't know, to be honest) what a tip even was, let alone how much to give. So we emptied our pockets, and all our money added up to $3.28.

    "Having no idea of how small this really was, we left. Later, we realized our mistake and felt terrible. We knew we had to make it right.

    "So together with this letter, you will find the correct 18% tip + extra for simply being amazing. Thank you for your help and patience and also thank you for making our night fun. Thank you!"

    The story of the fall of Troy is one of the oldest stories in history. It dates back to around 800 BC, to a poem written by a man called Homer. The poem is called The Iliad(《伊利亚待》). Ilium is the Greek name for Troy.

The story is a myth(神话), but many believe the city of Troy actually existed. Some people have thought it was in modern Turkey. Others have suggested it may have been in central Europe, northern Europe or even England.

    You could write a long book on all the paintings, music and stories about Achilles. His name is used for many things. Since 1744, about nine Royal Navy warships have been named after him, for example.

    A Trojan horse is a saying that now means something that seems friendly, but is actually a trick to hurt you. Some kinds of computer virus (病毒) are now called Trojans. An Achilles heel means a person's main weakness. The Achilles tendon(腱) is a medical name for part of your heel at the back

    Once there was a boy. He loved sweets(糖果) very much. He always asked his father for sweets.

    The boy's father thought hard about how to stop the child asking for so many sweets. There was a saint(圣人) living near their house. The boy's father decided to take the boy to him. He thought he might make the child give up (放弃) sweets.

    So they went to the saint. The father said," Great man, could you ask my son to stop asking for sweets all the time?" But it was difficult for the saint, because he liked sweets, too. Then he told the father to bring his son back after one month.

    During that month, the saint tried to stop eating sweets. At last, he did it. When the boy and his father went back a month later, the saint had a long talk with the boy. From then on, the boy did not ask for sweets any more.

    The boy's father felt surprised and asked, "Why didn't you ask my son to give up sweets when we came to you a month ago?" The saint answered," How could I ask a boy to give up sweets when I loved sweets myself? During the last month, I gave up eating sweets."

    A person's example(例子) is much more stronger(更有力的) than just his words. When we ask someone to do something, we must do it ourselves, too.